In Pain's Grip
by Ms. Jordie C
Summary: Set during in New Moon. Alice had a horrifying vision about Bella and the Cullens returned to Forks to protect her; even Edward. They are wrecked at what they see- the thin and lifeless Bella that had still not gotten over their absence. Several questions remain; How will Bella react? What's the danger? What happens when Bella's scar starts to burn again and she falls ill?
1. Visions and Decisions

_"The clock ticks, the hours pass by. The past increases and the future recedes. Possibilities decrease and regrets mount."_

_- At the Cullen Household-_

Alice gripped the coffee table tightly, the supple mahogany splintering underneath her forceful hands. Her ochre eyes was unfocused, far away as if she was daydreaming; but her family knew better. She was having a vision and by the looks of it, this particular outcome seemed disastrous. Jasper was beside her, his hands folding over hers and pulling them gently off the damaged table; shavings tumbled lightly to the carpeted ground and sat softly on the cream rug, but the Cullens were too concerned about Alice's vision to notice.

She shook slightly as the vision continued, her breaths catching in her throat. Jasper brushed his hand lightly over his wife's cheek trying to soothe her trembling form.

"Bella.." Alice breathed, her musical voice an octave higher than usual. The breaths of the family suddenly ceased to exist as soon as Alice had spoke the one name that they had been forbidden to even think about. Despite Edward's attempts to try and stop the family from acknowledging the fact that Bella was still around; they often found themselves wondering about the selfless human that had surprisingly found herself a place within the Cullen family. None of them wanted to leave her, none of them wanted her out of their lives- even Rosalie, although she would never admit it.

Bella had found her way into the hearts of all the Cullens; creating a permenant place within their lives and they'd accepted her graciously within it. Although the Cullens had expressed the fact that Bella was important, it ran a lot deeper than that. To them, she was more than a human, more than a person.

"Alice? What's wrong? What did you see?" Jasper asked, his topaz eyes betraying the concern he was feeling for her. Although, they were never the closest pair out of the family, he always considered Bella as a sister and was fiercely protective of her. Alice shook her head slowly as the vision ended, a sudden sob erupting from her petite body. Everybody blinked surprised; she wasn't usually like this. Since when did Alice ever cry?

"We've got to go back. Right now!.. Pack your bags! We need to go to Forks!" Alice cried, standing up suddenly, her eyes suddenly wild and stormy.

"We can't Alice.. We promised.." Esme explained quietly. Although her tone leaked sympathy, Jasper could feel the waves of panic rolling off her. Alice span quickly around to face Carlisle, desperate for him to understand- he was the one that would know what to do.

"Alice.. We promised Edward that we would stay away; you need to respect his decision. Even if we don't agree with it.." Carlisle scolded, his voice was compassionate and soft but even he knew how badly the family were dealing with Bella's absence. An atmosphere of guilt constantly hung around the Cullens, no matter how hard they tried to reason with the fact they wouldn't see Bella again.

"Carlisle.." Alice pleaded, her voice breaking slightly at the end, but he just shook his head, determined to keep Edward's promise. The silence that hung around the house was stifling, enveloping everyone in an awkward tension.

"What did you see, Alice?" Rosalie demanded, her golden eyes narrowed as she leant forward out of Emmett's arms and towards Alice. The tone was impatient but everyone picked up on the slight hint of concern that coloured her voice. Alice turned to face Rosalie, her topaz eyes glassy with tears.

"There's no time! We can stop it happening if we hurry up!"Alice said, sitting down angrily on the love seat as Jasper pulled her carefully into his lap.

"What's going to happen Alice?!" Rosalie growled, her fists clenched tightly in her sides as she waited impatiently for Alice to answer.

"Bella is going to visit Seattle; alone. It's going to rain, so she's going to take a shortcut down an alleyway but she's not going to notice _them_.." Alice explained quietly, her voice barely a breeze in the air. Jasper's arms automatically tightened around his wife; sensing her distress as well as his own.

"No.." Rosalie breathed, her golden eyes wide and unbelieving as she continued to look at Alice, trying to find any hint of a lie in on her face. Alice glanced to her side at Rosalie, shaking her head ever so slightly as if to answer her question. She was not lying nor was she joking. This was going to happen.

Rosalie lifted her hand up to her mouth in horror as she leaned back into Emmett's open arms but they were not comforting- they were too tense, too hard. A low growl escaped Jasper's chest as the rest of the family sat still, their minds processing the information slowly.

"Is the outcome fatal, Alice?" Carlisle asked, clasping his hands together in an attempt to calm himself down. Rosalie snarled quietly, answering his question.

"Severe blood loss, broken ribs, heavy hemorrhage of the brain, cracked skull.." Alice listed, ticking the things off of her fingers; her voice suddenly dwindling into hisses and growls.

"Beaten and raped." Rosalie spat, venom dripping off every word; the anger pulsing through her; but her mind couldn't help but wander to the panic and concern she was feeling for Bella. No matter how much they didn't get on; she never wished this upon anyone. Esme gasped softly as she shifted herself closer to Carlisle, trying to seek comfort off her husband.

The entire family looked at Carlisle, their leader as he rested his chin on his clasped hands. The room was still for a minute as he contemplated something. Rosalie stood up defiantly, her arms crossed.

"I'm going back to Forks to protect Bella and you can't stop me. I don't care that we've never seen eye to eye; she doesn't deserve this. No one does. Is anyone else coming or are you just going to sit here and respect Edward's pathetic wish?" Rosalie demanded, her angry gaze glancing over all her family members. Emmett pushed himself up off the love seat as he wrapped a protective arm around his mate's waist. Jasper and Alice shared a look, took each other's hands and stood up; their protectiveness over shadowing their promise to Edward.

Esme looked desperately at Carlisle, her eyes begging him to decide, to agree to come with the rest of family. He glanced up, took one long sweeping gaze at his standing family and slowly rose to his feet, his worry for Bella growing.

"Edward needs to know what's going on." Carlisle sighed quietly, knowing how badly his son was going to react. Although Carlisle agreed to respect Edward's decision, he never thought it was a wise idea. Edward without Bella was like someone without half of their body. It wasn't natural.

Carlisle walked over to the phone, picking it up off the holder as everyone watched him anxiously. He took a deep breath and dialled Edward's mobile phone; waiting for him to answer. It was very rare that he'd ever pick up the on the first call; he preferred to be cut off from the rest of the world. The phone rings continued for a few minutes as the family waited nervously for him to answer the call.

The sudden steady breaths of Edward echoed down the phone and the family exhaled in relief.

"Edward." Carlisle greeted, his voice light and warming, despite the severity of the conversation that had just happened moments ago.

"Carlisle." Edward addressed stiffly, his voice was a void of emotion, empty and unwelcoming. His absence from Bella had hit him a lot harder than anyone had expected; no one had realised that he'd turn out this way. Alone and empty.

"Whereabouts are you now, son? Any luck tracking her?" Carlisle asked gently, understanding that it might be a touchy area in terms of conversation. Edward sighed loudly, his annoyance clearly expressed in his gesture.

"I'm somewhere in Brazil, Victoria's scent led to here but the trail ended at the edge of ocean. I think I might be able to pick it up again if I swim; but there is no gurantee." Edward spoke quickly, the unnmistakable sound of his teeth grounding together in frustration. Carlisle's lips twitched slightly into a small smile, knowing how adamant his son would be to find Victoria.

"How's everything in Alaska? Are the family alright?" Edward questioned, his voice turning very soft and quiet. Leaving them to be alone had been hard for him; but they had been understanding and wished him to visit and be safe. Carlisle paused for a moment; was Bella classed into the topic of family?

"Carlisle?" Edward called down the phone anxiously, when Carlisle didn't answer straight away. Was the family hurt? Had something happened?

"You need to come to Alaska, Edward. As soon as you can. A vision Alice got.. Well.. I'll explain it as soon as you get here." Carlisle explained, as Edward's breath catched in his throat slightly.

"What's happened, Carlisle? Is Esme hurt? Alice?" Edward's voice became tense and anxious; as worst case possibilities ran through his head. Carlisle took a deep breath, preparing to tell him.

"No, everyone here is fine.. It's just.." He couldn't finish his sentence. How could he possibly break the news to his son? Although it hadn't happened yet, an air of grief was hanging in the air, saturating everyone around. Rosalie took a step forward, snatched the phone out of Carlisle's hand and pressed the phone up to ear.

"Edward." Rosalie addressed bluntly, her patience with the situation wearing extremely thin. It was bad enough that they had to wait here until he arrived. That would take at least a week and they didn't have that much time.

"Put Carlisle back on, Rose. I don't have time for this." Edward growled, irriated with the sudden interruption of his conversation. Rosalie rolled her eyes, hissing slightly as he complained.

"Listen here, Edward. We're going back to Forks today and we need you there with us as soon as possible." Rosalie demanded, putting her hand on hip and waiting for what he had to say.

"I'm not going back and neither are you. End of." Edward snarled, the tone he used verging to acid. The family could picture him now, pinching the bridge of his nose with coal, black eyes narrowed in annoyance.

"Alice had a vision about.." Rosalie paused, even her beautiful face twisting slightly in pain.

"About what, Rose? Do tell, because it seems I'm the only one who doesn't know!" Edward snapped, his voice raising to a yell. Rosalie's topaz eyes turned into slits and her fists clenched tightly.

"It's about Bella. She's in danger. Convinced to come back to Forks yet?" Rose asked bitterly, as the other side of the line went quiet.

"Danger?" He whispered, so quietly that everyone had to strain to hear him. Edward's voice sounded so broken, so lonely that even Rosalie's features softened.

"Come home Edward. We can all stop it happening.." Rose pleaded gently as she glanced anxiously at the clock. 28 hours left.

"Put Alice on." Edward spoke faintly, his voice barely audible. Rosalie held the phone out towards Alice. She took it carefully from her sisters hand and placed it gently to her ear.

"Edward?" Alice called gently into the phone, understanding how fragile Edward would be feeling right now. Bella was his world, his entire existence and the thought of her in danger made him sick to the core.

"What did you see, Alice? She doesn't.. Does she?.." Edward struggled with his words, the one word that could send his life in complete darkness was on the tip of tongue but he didn't dare say it, afraid if he did then it would be true.

"No Edward. She doesn't.. die. But it's going to be close unless we save her." Alice tried to calm her brother down but she knew it was futile when Bella's life was in danger.

"What did you see?" He asked bleakly, his voice even more weak than usual. Alice paused; should she tell him?

"Alice." Edward growled, when she didn't reply straight away.

"Just like in Port Angeles, expect this time you won't be there to save her.." She didn't have to finish, she knew he'd already guessed what would happen next. Rosalie's head snapped towards Alice, unable to believe that it had almost happened before.

"N0!" Edward snarled as a loud crashing sound echoed through the phone. Alice cringed slightly, hating to think how angry he was and what he was breaking. Undoubtedly, the place he was in would be trashed.

"When?" Edward growled, demandingly trying to keep his voice tight and restrained but everyone could hear the fury behind his words.

Alice closed her eyes tightly, seeking the future quickly but the vision was still exactly the same.

"Less than 2 days. PleaseAlice begged, her worry for best friend growing even more. The phone went silent as Edward contemplated.

"Alice.. I don't think I can see her. She's going to take one look at me and hate me for what I said. She'll never forgive me.. And what if she's moved on? I promised it would be as if I never existed.. What if coming back ruins her chance at happiness?.. I don't want to do that to her.." Edward's voice sounded muffled as if his head was in his hands. His voice broke slightly at the end, even now he couldn't say Bella's name without the possibility of pain. The family wallowed in pity for him.

"We will figure something out, Edward. Don't worry. We'll all meet up in Forks. Rosalie and Emmett will take the Jeep, Carlisle and Esme will take the Mercedes, Jasper and me will take Rosalie's BMW. Get a plane ticket to Forks as soon as possible." Alice explained, quickly checking into the future to see whether her plan would run smooth.

"I'll be there as soon as I can. If I'm not, protect her. You have to promise me you'll do that." Edward begged, his voice rough with anxiety.

"We all will. We all promise. Hurry Edward." Alice said with conviction in her tone as she pressed the end button the call and placed it back into the holder. The whole family looked at her, waiting to see what he had said, their eyes wide and anxious.

"Pack up everything. We're moving back to Forks and Edward is coming with us."


	2. Through Her Father Eyes

"A broken heart is like broken ribs: you look fine but every breath hurts.."

The hardest thing about following your heart is that people always forget to mention that sometimes the heart takes you to places you shouldn't be. Places that are scary as they are exciting and as dangerous as they are alluring. Sometimes your heart cannot take you to places that lead to a happy ending. That's not even the difficult part; the difficult part is when you follow your heart, you leave normal; you go into the unknown and once you do you can never go back.

If only Bella could go back, rewind her life until she was back in Phoenix, saying goodbye to her mum and Phil with a sad smile spread across her face. She would of known what would of happened then, how the mysterious Edward Cullen would turn out and what would become of her once she entered the unknown. But she couldn't and nobody knew it more than Bella.

What she wouldn't give to be able to wipe her memory now, delete the constant pain that clouded her senses; but that meant forgetting and she would never choose to forget them.. Or him. The anguish was a reminder that they ever existed, that they were ever real and for that, Bella was grateful. She never wanted to neglect the presence of the Cullens in her life, ever, she never wanted to look back and not be able to recall who they were.

The Cullens were like Bella's crutch, holding her up, supporting every move that she made, catching her when she fell. Without warning, they left, yanking themselves so abruptly out of Bella's grasp that she had no idea how to live without them. So, what happens when you take the crutch away from someone who needs it? The person falls and Bella fell hard.

* * *

Charlie's heavy, work boots clunked loudly as he took a few hesitant steps towards his daughter's bedroom, straining his ears to hear whether she was awake. He paused outside the door, his hand reaching for the handle, desperation in this action. Maybe she'd wake up differently today, her eyes alive and happy with a wide smile spread across her face. Only he made her smile like that. Maybe, she had woken up and realised it was time to stop whatever she was doing, snap out of this permanent daze and get on with her life.

Charlie was a wishful thinker but he even knew that she wouldn't and deep down, he didn't think she ever would. With a resounding sigh, he pressed against the handle, twisting it as quietly as possible until it clicked open. He'd check on her every morning, just before heading down to the station; to make sure she was okay and coping but every time he saw her, it hurt him just a little bit more.

Charlie knew Bella tried to act normal around him, to hide what she was truly feeling and bottle it up. She'd cook him dinner, a weak smile on her pale face as she'd set down the plate in front of him but her eyes were faraway, always unfocused as she gazed unseeingly at the floor. She wasn't with him any more and he knew it.

Charlie pushed the door open with an audible creak, he cringed away from the noise, afraid that he had woken her.

It's not as if she sleeps anyway.

The bed covers rustled slightly and the mattress squeaked as Bella shifted her weight, trying to get comfortable. Charlie popped his head through the gap, a faint smile stretching his tired face. Finally, she was sleeping. He released a relieved breath he hadn't realised he had been holding and he slightly stepped into the room, trying to get a closer look at Bella.

Something wasn't right, Charlie could sense it. He frowned, staring at her a moment longer, wondering whether he was just being foolish but even he could see the light sheen of sweat that coated Bella's forehead and how loosely she was wrapped up in her sheets. Was she ill? Charlie's gaze quickly flickered to the open window and his frown became more pronounced.

It was winter in Forks now, delicate snowflakes drifting gently to the crisp, green ground as a bitter wind swirled around Bella's room. Charlie shivered, feeling the cold reaching out and touching his bare skin. Why was her window open in the freezing weather?

Charlie strode over to it, pulling the glass down with ease until it clicked shut- Strange. It wasn't as jammy as he expected. He turned to look back at Bella, the feeling of helplessness rising up in his throat as she mumbled quietly in her slumber. Hesitantly Charlie reached forward and pressed his hand gently against her cheek. Her porcelain skin was burning, hotter than usual, perspiration trickling slowly down her face as Charlie pulled his hand away.

_Should I stay home with her? She's ill, she needs rest and help off me. No, all she'd do would look at me with those large, empty eyes and say how she's fine. Why is nothing simple any more?!_ Charlie argued internally within himself; trying to come to the conclusion of what he should do. He knew what his daughter would do- deny the fact of being ill and drag herself through the day as she does with all the rest.

No matter what he said or did, she would still come home from school, a hollow look shadowing her eyes as she went straight to room; no emotion, no sentiment. Charlie saw her slipping away each day, becoming more reserved, sinking within herself without the possibility of rising. She never went out, she never commented on school or made an effect to make herself look presentable. She was like the living dead- barely breathing.

It didn't help that he knew who had caused this. The name was enough to make Charlie reach for his gun. He exhaled angrily, clenching his fists tightly together in an attempt to keep calm. The saddest thing about it was that he knew, deep, deep down only he could bring her out of this hazy mess, that only he could snap her out of this zombie like state.

Charlie gazed at Bella sadly, wishing for a miracle, wishing for some sort of hope to save his daughter. He walked back towards the door, briefly looking over his shoulder at his daughter, his life. As he quietly shut the door and descended down the steps as gently as he could, he wished for something that even surprised himself.

_Come back, Edward. Come back to Forks and save my daughter. Please._


	3. Things Got Worse

_"People are like oceans. Some parts are visible, but mostly, you cannot see the shallow pools of truth and deep pools of mystery."_

If you asked Bella what day it was today, she would not be able to answer you. She'd simply glance at you with those empty, brown eyes of hers and pierce you with a gaze that seemed like she was looking straight through you. But somedays she wouldn't acknowledge you at all. It was if she couldn't even hear you through her protective cloud of numbness that she had so carefully built.

Today was one of those days.

The canteen was alive with noise. Tightly huddled people whispered between themselves, others shouting across the room to each other. Either way the words that they spoke were incomprehensible to Bella. All it sounded like to her was a loud buzz, just like the noise you hear after your ears have stopped ringing.

Bella was slumped in a plastic chair, drawn into the table as far as it could possibly go, avoiding the pitiful gazes and eye rolls she always received when she sat at the Cullens table by herself. Blocking out the noise with her hunched shoulders, Bella stared into the wood grain of the table top, unimpressed by each unique twist and shade of wood that was swirled onto the surface.

The raw sensation of pain began to gnaw on the outer corners of her chest, compressing her lungs down into the bones of her rib cage. Bella felt surprisingly light-headed, like she was drifting above the clouds of her own tormented mind, away from the absence of Edward, far away from the life of Forks.

Forgetting to breathe was a habit of Bella's.

Failing to notice the sudden silence that fell over the canteen, she continued to gaze into nothing, hands tightening into white knuckled fists as stopping the oxygen from reaching her lungs began to burn her airways.

It was a ritual Bella did every time at 12 o'clock exactly. She would hold her breath for as long as she could and if the 2 minute mark past, then the Cullens would come back. Of course, she never reached the 120 second milestone and that is what convinced Bella the reason for the Cullens not returning was because of her failure.

Failing to notice the sudden silence that had fallen on the canteen, Bella continued to stop the air from passing through her lips, passing the minute mark with extreme difficulty. Head swimming, eyes burning, CO2 building up, Bella continued.

She lowered her head even further, caving and folding herself in like deflating origami that had been folded wrong. In all honesty, her skin was thin and translucent enough to look like paper, except for the dark colouring that stained underneath her eyes.

_When did she sleep last? Bella couldn't remember._

* * *

Edward's foot pressed the accelerator harder, impatience and determination coursing violently through his body. Black eyes flickered to the speed meter, flashing briefly with unhappiness at the slowness in which he was travelling.

The grip he had on the steering wheel was enough to imprint the leather, leaving indents of solid fingers pressed harshly into it. Uncaring for the car, he continued to push onwards, revving it to its full speed capacity. _Come on. Come on!_

Growling with frustration, Edward's phone began to ring, Debussy lost over the car's engine, annoying him further. He snatched up, lightening fast, taking his hand off the wheel and answering it instantly.

"Alice." Edward greeted curtly, voice flat and void of emotion.

"Edward. The vision is beginning to change. You need to hurry." Alice didn't bother with sugar coating anything, she said it quickly with a demanding tone that suggested panic. Edward bolted up in his seat straight away; dread coating his throat and mind with a cloying taste that he couldn't get rid of.

"Does she?.." He couldn't even form the word, venom thickening on the letters until it refused to come out of his mouth.

Alice didn't answer.

Edward's grip tightened on the phone with such strength that the screen began to splinter under his touch. Panic welled up in his stomach, a lead weight in his organs, until he couldn't breathe.

He tried again.

"Alice?" He spat his sister's name through gritted teeth, trying to level his voice out.

"Just hurry."

The phone crushed under Edward's hand and he said no more.

* * *

Laurent glanced at his reflection in the river's water, seemingly unbothered by the blood that stained his lips. Victoria had been very specific about how to kill Bella and drinking her dry seemed to be too painless for Bella's demise.

Shaking his head, he straightened up, skin gleaming dimly in the filtered sunlight. Feeding on the locals had been Laurent's only sure way that he wouldn't simply drink Bella's blood as soon as he caught her scent.

The smell of freesias.

It was mouthwatering.

* * *

She was going cliff jumping today.

Adrenaline junkie and all that jazz.

Wanting to see Edward once more.

The feeling never left.


End file.
